The railroad industry employs a variety of auto-rack railroad cars for transporting newly-manufactured vehicles such as automobiles, vans, and trucks. Auto-rack railroad cars, known in the railroad industry as auto-rack cars, often travel thousands of miles through varying terrain. Auto-rack cars can have one deck, and often are compartmented, having two or three decks. Newly manufactured vehicles are loaded into and unloaded from an auto-rack car for transport by one or more persons (each sometimes called a “loader”) who drive the vehicles into or out of the auto-rack car.
One problem relating to auto-rack cars involves the bridge plates used to load and unload a string or series of connected or coupled auto-rack cars. Prior to loading or unloading the string or series of connected or coupled auto-rack cars, the doors of the auto-rack cars are opened and bridge plates are positioned in the gaps between each of the adjacent auto-rack cars. In other words, each gap between each pair of adjacent decks of adjacent auto-rack cars is spanned by a pair of portable removable bridge plates to load the vehicles. The vehicles are loaded in the auto-rack cars by driving the vehicles into one end of the string or series of connected or coupled auto-rack cars, over the bridge plates and through the adjacent cars until all of the auto-rack cars in the series or string are filled. The vehicles are driven into the first auto-rack car on either the first, second, or third deck (depending upon the type and size of auto-rack car and the vehicle). One deck or level at a time is typically loaded, and then the bridge plates are moved downwardly or upwardly to load the next deck or level. This process is reversed for unloading the vehicles from the string or series of connected or coupled auto-rack cars.
Each pair of bridge plates supports the vehicle as it is driven over the gap between the aligned decks of the adjacent auto-rack cars with one bridge plate supporting the right side and the other bridge plate supporting the left side of the vehicle. The bridge plates are typically mounted to the auto-rack cars only during the loading and unloading of the vehicles. The Association of American Railroads (AAR) specifies a maximum weight, a minimum strength requirement, and a fatigue load for such bridge plates in AAR Specifications.
Each bridge plate is typically made of an aluminum plate and a steel locking assembly attached to the bottom of one end of the aluminum plate. Each bridge plate is pivotally attached by the locking assembly to one end of one auto-rack car and spans the gap to the deck of the adjacent auto-rack car. Each bridge plate is only attached to one of the adjacent auto-rack cars at one end so as to accommodate variable spacing between adjacent coupled auto-rack cars in the string or series of auto-rack cars that are undergoing loading or unloading. The end of the bridge plate that is the non-pivotally attached end of the bridge plate rests on the adjacent auto-rack car deck. The steel locking assembly of each bridge plate includes multiple outwardly extending pins (including a spring biased locking pin) that pivotally attach the bridge plate to one of the auto-rack cars. The locking assembly is connected to and can be accessed from the bottom side of the bridge plate.
One such known bridge plate locking assembly includes: (a) a support bracket; (b) a guide tube connected to the bottom of the support bracket; (c) a first slidable locking pin partially positioned in the guide tube; (d) a first handle integrally attached to the first slidable locking pin; (e) a second slidable locking pin positioned in the guide tube; (f) a second handle integrally attached to the second slidable locking pin and also integrally connected to first handle; (g) a pivot pin partially positioned in the guide tube and loosely attached to the guide tube by a rivet; (h) a collar journaled about to the second locking pin; and (i) a spring positioned in the guide tube between the collar and the pivot pin.
During use, installation, and/or removal of bridge plates that have such locking assemblies, the bridge plates and the locking assemblies thereof are often subjected to various forces (such as forces that occur when such bridge plates are dropped). When a bridge plate is subjected to such forces, one or more components of the locking assembly of that bridge plate can be bent, cracked, or otherwise damaged. For example, in the known locking assembly described above, one or more of: (i) the guide tube; (ii) the first slidable locking pin; (iii) the second slidable locking pin; and (v) the pivot pin, often become bent or otherwise damaged. When this occurs, the locking assembly does not easily function, does not properly function, or does not function at all. In another example, the collar journaled about the second slidable locking pin can crack and then move with respect to the second slidable locking pin. When this occurs, the tension provided by the spring on the first and second locking pins is reduced and this know locking assembly does not easily function, does not properly function, or does not function at all.
This known locking assembly cannot be easily, quickly, or efficiently repaired because the first locking pin, the second locking pin, and the respective handles are welded to each other and thus cannot be readily removed from the guide tube. Thus, the entire locking assembly must be replaced or the entire bridge plate must be replaced.
Accordingly, there is a need to solve these problems.